Question

(b) plumbing the elevation at one end of a lot is 84.25 ft, and the elevation at the other end is 71.70 ft. express the difference in elevation in feet and inches and round to the nearest $\frac{1}{8}$ in.

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate difference in feet

$84.25 - 71.70= 12.55$ ft

Step2: Separate whole - feet and decimal part

The whole - feet part is 12 ft. The decimal part is $0.55$ ft.

Step3: Convert decimal part of feet to inches

Since 1 ft = 12 inches, $0.55\times12 = 6.6$ inches.

Step4: Round to the nearest $\frac{1}{8}$ inch

$6.6$ inches. $\frac{1}{8}=0.125$. $6.6\div0.125 = 52.8$. Rounding 52.8 to the nearest whole number gives 53. So the number of $\frac{1}{8}$ - inches is 53, and $53\times\frac{1}{8}=6\frac{5}{8}$ inches.

Answer:

12 ft $6\frac{5}{8}$ in