This is the 9848th most frequent Spanish word.
bastaban
"bastaban" = "were enough"
This sentence uses "bastaban" to indicate that an amount of time used to be sufficient for completing an activity.
Antes, bastaban tres horas para completar ese trabajo.
Before, three hours were enough to complete that task.
Here, "bastaban" refers to having enough of something to meet requirements or satisfy needs in the past.
Aunque no eran ricos, bastaban para cubrir sus necesidades básicas.
Even though they weren't wealthy, they had enough to cover their basic needs.
In this instance, "bastaban" is used to imply that a simple action or element was sufficient to achieve a desired effect in the past.