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Pipes and Cisterns Practice Questions with Detailed Solutions – Level 3

Hard pipes and cisterns problems on midway leaks, alternate and rotating taps, outlets working against inlets, efficiency ratios and tank capacity in litres.

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Questions, answer key and solutions.

Questions
50
Duration
75 min
Marks
50

Negative marking

Attempts
100
Access
Free

Normal practice, or a Simulated test

Both use the same questions. Normal practice is untimed and needs no account: choose an option and the answer and solution appear at once. The Simulated test is the real computer-based format, with one 75-minute clock, a question palette and full screen, and your score, the key and the solutions arrive when you submit.

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The computer-based test format: one clock, a question palette, and a score the moment you submit.

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About this test

Pipes and Cisterns Level 3 Practice Questions: Leaks, Outlets and Alternate Taps

This Level 3 Pipes and Cisterns set on Aptitude360 is for aptitude aspirants who already handle basic inlet and outlet problems and want harder, multi-step practice. It covers leaks that start midway, taps opened alternately or in rotation, outlets working against inlets and tank capacity in litres. Every question has a detailed written solution.

Topics covered in this advanced pipes and cisterns set

  • Leaks that develop when the tank is partly full, and the time the leak alone needs to empty it
  • Taps opened alternately or in rotation, including cycles with an outlet
  • Inlets and outlets opened together, with the outlet's time or flow rate to be found
  • Tank capacity in litres from a fixed flow rate
  • Pipe efficiencies or filling times given as ratios
  • Pipes closed partway, and tanks that start partly full

Key pipes and cisterns formulas for multi-step problems

  • Rate of a pipe filling capacity \( C \) in time \( a \): \( r=\dfrac{C}{a} \)
  • Two inlets together: \( T=\dfrac{ab}{a+b} \)
  • Inlet time \( a \), outlet time \( b \), \( b>a \): \( T=\dfrac{ab}{b-a} \)
  • Leak alone, filling time rises from \( a \) to \( b \): \( L=\dfrac{ab}{b-a} \)
  • Capacity from rate and time: \( C=r\times t \)

Revision tips for tougher cistern questions

  • Take the tank capacity as the LCM of the individual times so every pipe's rate is a whole number of units
  • In alternate-tap questions, find the work done in one full cycle, then check whether the tank fills partway through the last cycle
  • When an outlet is in the rotation, track the level turn by turn because the tank can fill before a cycle ends
  • For litre-based questions, equate the leak's unit rate to its given flow in litres to get the actual capacity

Who should take this pipes and cisterns practice

It suits competitive exam aspirants who have finished the easier levels of this topic and want tougher arithmetic practice before full mocks.

FAQs about Pipes and Cisterns Practice Questions with Detailed Solutions – Level 3

What is the basic formula for pipes and cisterns?
If a pipe fills a tank in a units of time, it fills one over a of the tank in each unit of time. Rates of inlets are added and rates of outlets are subtracted to get the net rate.
How do you find the time taken by a leak to empty a tank?
If a pipe alone fills the tank in time a but takes time b because of a leak, the leak alone empties the full tank in a times b divided by b minus a.
How are pipes and cisterns questions solved using the LCM method?
Assume the tank capacity equals the LCM of all the given times, then divide it by each time to get every pipe's units per unit time. Subtract the units of outlets from those of inlets, and capacity divided by the net rate gives the time taken.
How is pipes and cisterns related to time and work?
Pipes and cisterns follows the same logic as time and work, with filling the tank treated as the work. The difference is that an outlet or leak undoes work, so its rate is subtracted.

Test structure

How the paper is split, and how long each part runs. A section you have finished cannot be returned to.

SectionQuestionsTime
Pipes and Cisterns Level 35075 min

Marking & rules

Total marks
50 across 50 questions.
Negative marking
A wrong answer costs marks. Leaving a question unanswered costs nothing.
Attempts
100 in total. An attempt is spent the moment you begin one.

What you get when you submit

The analysis is ready the moment you submit the paper.

Score and accuracy

Marks, percentage, right, wrong and skipped, and the time you took.

Section by section

The same figures for each section, so a weak one cannot hide in an average.

The full answer key

Every question with your answer, the right one, the working, and the video where there is one.

Where you stand

Your score against the spread of everyone else who has sat this test.

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