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1. Place the tiles in their corresponding boxes on the back-lit panel.
2. Direct the hose to fill the "5" bucket.

Turn 9

Gerrick 1: Place the tiles in their corresponding boxes on the back-lit panel.
You examine the tiles, then the panel underneath the painting. The panel is completely flat. But, the tiles certainly look fairly thick. There might be magnets inside. You attempt to hold each letter against their respective panel, briefly blocking the red light as you do. However, the tiles do not stay in place. What now?

Painting

[W][A][T][C][H]

Tiles

Gerrick 2: Direct the hose to fill the "5" bucket.
Leaving the tiles for the moment, you fill the “5” bucket with the hose. Bucket 5 displays 5/5 on it, bucket 3 displays 0/3, and the third bucket is set on 0. Five moves remain before all the buckets empty.



(Good luck!)

1. Dump the 5 gallon bucket into the 3 gallon bucket until it is full.
2. Dump the contents of the 5 gallon bucket (2 gallons) into the bottom bucket.
3. Dump the 3 gallon bucket into the 5 gallon bucket.

Haha, what is that gonna do?

1. Direct the hose to fill the "3" bucket.
2. Dump the "5" bucket's water into the third extra bucket.
3. Direct the hose to fill the "5" bucket.

Isn't the solution to get four? I'll assume gallons.
So:

1. Fill the 5 'gallon' bucket.
2. Dump the 5 gallon bucket into the 3 gallon bucket until it is full.
3. Dump the contents of the 5 gallon bucket (2 gallons) into the bottom bucket.
4. Dump the 3 gallon bucket into the 5 gallon bucket.
5. Dump the 5 gallon bucket into the 3 gallon bucket until it is full.
6. Dump the contents of the 5 gallon bucket (2 gallons) into the bottom bucket.

That's six steps, which is exactly the number we need, and it results in 4 gallons in the lower bucket.
@Gerrick

Oh, hold on... I skipped a step... After step 4, you have to direct the hose to fill the 5 gallon bucket again... which would be seven steps....

What was your plan @Gerrick?

Ohh, I see. I was thinking the bottom set of buckets would like subtract from the total number up top and that the third extra bucket would dump water into the bottom buckets. Also forgot about the 6-turn rule.

Yeah, I can figure 2 different ways to do it in 7 steps but not 6. Hmm...

What is the second method you can think of that will achieve that same goal in seven? Maybe there is a variation of that that can do it in six?

What is the second method you can think of that will achieve that same goal in seven? Maybe there is a variation of that that can do it in six?

I don't think so, but here it is:
1. Fill bucket 3
2. Dump bucket 3 into extra bucket
3. Fill bucket 3
4. Dump bucket 3 into bucket 5
5. Fill bucket 3
6. Dump bucket 3 into bucket 5
7. Dump bucket 3 into extra bucket

Yeah, that's an entirely different solution, and I can't see any variation on that that would work.

@Gerrick
@El Fiji Grande

(Going strictly by the order of inputs, I currently have):

El Fiji Grande 1: Dump the 5 gallon bucket into the 3 gallon bucket until it is full.
El Fiji Grande 2: Dump the contents of the 5 gallon bucket (2 gallons) into the bottom bucket.
El Fiji Grande 3: Dump the 3 gallon bucket into the 5 gallon bucket.

Gerrick 1: Fill bucket 3
Gerrick 2: Dump bucket 3 into extra bucket
Gerrick 3: Fill bucket 3

(I'm assuming, especially in Gerrick's case, these aren't your final choices? Since there's a clarity issue here I'm going to postpone the update post until tomorrow and give you both time to think on it more. I am certainly not motivated by how I have a cold and am concerned a headache is making me math wrong. That said, I have double checked my master list of puzzle solutions and can say, with a hundred percent certainty, that this puzzle is solvable).

(And, as is now custom for when I skip a proper update, have a clarification hint):

Hidden Hint Hides

(Who said the "Four" refers to a specific bucket?)

Hmmm.. I'll reconsider the options. I hadn't realized the four could be in any of the buckets. Or perhaps the goal is to simply have four gallons in the system, dispersed across buckets...

1. Fill the 3
2. Pour contents of the 3 into the 5
3. Fill the 3
4. Pour contents of the 3 into the 5
5. Dump the 5
6. Pour contents of the 3 into the 5
7. Fill the 3
8. Pour contents of the 3 into the 5

Now you have four gallons in the 5 gallon bucket... but that's eight steps...

Sorry, Elbbsas, yeah no, I didn't mean those as inputs.

So if we assume the extra bucket doesn't count towards the total, I can come up with a 7-step:
1. Fill 5 bucket
2. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket
3. Dump 3 bucket into extra bucket
4. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket
5. Fill 5 bucket
6. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket
7. Dump 3 bucket into extra bucket

And if we assume the 4 doesn't need to be in just one of the top two buckets, we could do yours in 7 as well.

But still can't figure out 6...

Hold on....

1. Fill 5 bucket
2. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket (2 left in 5 bucket)
3. Dump 3 bucket into extra bucket
4. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket (2 in 3 bucket)
5. Fill 5 bucket
6. Dump 5 bucket into 3 bucket (3 in 3 bucket; 4 in 5 bucket)

THAT'S GOTTA BE IT
@Gerrick