Built-up roofing, or tar and gravel, is the century-old system still protecting Grand Prairie buildings that were roofed before single-ply existed, and still a legitimate choice for the right structure.
Built-up roofing is layered redundancy: alternating plies of bitumen and reinforcing felt, finished with gravel that shields the assembly from UV and foot traffic. On Grand Prairie buildings with existing BUR, maintenance and restoration often beat replacement, since the mass and redundancy that make the system heavy are also what make it durable. The moisture survey decides restore versus replace. Cedar Crest provides free written estimates, documents each inspection with photos, never waives a deductible because Texas law forbids it, and does not serve as a public adjuster.
Keeping Built-Up Roofs Working in Grand Prairie
On a gravel-surfaced roof, hail damage can hide under the ballast, where a walk-through misses it and an instrument survey does not. That matters in Grand Prairie, which has had one-inch-or-larger hail in 16 of the last 20 years, and where the largest report within 8 miles was 4.0 inches on June 12, 2023. A BUR roof that has taken several seasons of that deserves a proper survey before anyone writes it off or restores it. The city’s building stock is established, with a median housing build year of 1992 and 31 percent of homes built before 1980, so many properties here are on their second or third roof generation. Grand Prairie is in Dallas County, and our commercial crews also cover Duncanville and Cedar Hill.
THE SYSTEM
Built-Up Roofing (BUR), up close.
Flat / low-slope membrane. Single-ply and built-up systems chosen by what the roof actually does all day.
PUBLIC RECORD
The local record behind Built-Up Roofing (BUR) in Grand Prairie
How a roof system holds up in Grand Prairie depends on the storms it has to take and the houses it sits on. Here is what the public record shows.
45
Hail days, 1 in.+ since 2006
16
Golf-ball-size hail days
4 in.
Largest stone on record
1992
Median year homes built
Hail near Grand Prairie
Hail is a regular event around Grand Prairie. NOAA's Storm Events Database lists 45 separate days since 2006 with hail one inch or larger reported within 8 miles of the city, and on 16 of those days the stones reached golf ball size or bigger. Hail that size was reported in 16 of the last 20 years. The largest stones on record nearby measured 4 inches (grapefruit size) on June 12, 2023. The most recent report: 1-inch hail on May 24, 2026.
June 12, 2023: 4-inch hail (grapefruit size)
May 27, 2024: 3.25-inch hail (teacup size)
April 25, 2026: 3-inch hail (teacup size)
June 13, 2012: 3-inch hail (teacup size)
May 24, 2011: 2.75-inch hail (baseball size)
How old Grand Prairie homes are
The median home in Grand Prairie was built in 1992, and 31% of the city's 71,853 housing units predate 1980. Many of these houses are likely on their second roof or nearing the point where they need one.
Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database (hail reports since 2006 within 8 miles of Grand Prairie); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates. Data pulled September 2026.
Common questions about built-up roofing (bur) in Grand Prairie
My Grand Prairie building has tar-and-gravel. Replace it?
Not automatically. Sound BUR restores and maintains well; its redundancy is real. A moisture survey tells you whether the assembly beneath the gravel is dry, and that answer decides.
Why did BUR fall out of fashion?
Weight, installation labor, and odor during application. Single-ply installs faster and lighter. Neither of those points makes an existing sound BUR roof bad.
Should we match the original material when re-roofing in Grand Prairie?
Not automatically. A roof on its second or third cycle is a chance to rethink: Class 4 asphalt for the insurance math, metal or premium systems where the home and horizon justify them. We quote the honest options against your actual house.
How often does hail hit Grand Prairie?
NOAA's Storm Events Database lists 45 days since 2006 with hail one inch or larger reported within 8 miles of Grand Prairie, including 16 days with golf ball size stones or bigger. Hail that size was reported in 16 of the last 20 years. The most recent report was 1-inch hail on May 24, 2026.
How old are most homes in Grand Prairie?
The median home in Grand Prairie was built in 1992, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey. 31% of the city's housing units predate 1980 and 17% were built in 2010 or later. Many homes here are reaching the age when original roofs come due.
