Built-up roofing, or tar and gravel, is the century-old system still protecting Venus buildings that were roofed before single-ply existed, and still a legitimate choice for the right structure.
BUR builds a roof in redundant layers: alternating bitumen and reinforcing felts topped with gravel that shields the assembly from UV and traffic. Existing BUR in Venus often earns maintenance and restoration over replacement, since the mass and redundancy that made it heavy also made it durable.
We install and service built-up roofing (bur) across Venus and the surrounding DFW communities. That includes free written estimates, documented inspections, and honest guidance on whether this system actually fits your home and budget.
The Venus specifics
In Venus, the Built-Up Roofing (BUR) conversation usually starts with the roof that is already up there. Most of the housing went up in the last two decades, which means first-generation roofs aging out on the same schedule, block after block. That building stock puts membranes to work: seams, penetrations, and drainage patterns matter more than brand names, and the moisture survey decides restore-versus-replace.
City paperwork in Venus is ours to carry: permit filed, inspection booked, final documentation in your folder. North Texas sits in the country’s most active hail belt, and single-ply shows bruise fractures that a chalk circle will not catch. Instrument surveys find what walking the roof misses. The same crews run Cleburne, Alvarado, and Joshua, so comparable local installs are usually close enough to go look at. Once we have looked at the actual roof, everything above gets specific, in writing.
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 Venus
How a roof system holds up in Venus depends on the storms it has to take and the houses it sits on. Here is what the public record shows.
7
Hail days, 1 in.+ since 2006
1
Golf-ball-size hail days
2.75 in.
Largest stone on record
2014
Median year homes built
Hail near Venus
Reported hail is less frequent around Venus: NOAA lists 7 days since 2006 with hail one inch or larger within 4 miles. Fewer reports can also reflect fewer storm spotters in smaller communities, so a quiet record is not a guarantee. Hail that size was reported in 5 of the last 20 years. The largest stones on record nearby measured 2.75 inches (baseball size) on April 9, 2021. The most recent report: 1.5-inch hail on June 2, 2026.
April 9, 2021: 2.75-inch hail (baseball size)
June 2, 2026: 1.5-inch hail (walnut size)
February 27, 2017: 1.5-inch hail (walnut size)
May 16, 2025: 1-inch hail (quarter size)
April 24, 2015: 1-inch hail (quarter size)
How old Venus homes are
Venus is young by roofing standards: the median home was built in 2014, and 66% of its 1,753 housing units date to 2010 or later. Many of those homes still have the roof the builder installed, now working through its first hail seasons.
Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database (hail reports since 2006 within 4 miles of Venus); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates. Data pulled September 2026.
Common questions about built-up roofing (bur) in Venus
My Venus 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.
Is upgrading from builder-grade shingles worth it in Venus?
Usually at the first replacement or claim: Class 4 impact-rated systems earn many Texas carriers' premium discounts, and newer communities' HOA standards generally approve them easily. The math works hardest on homes facing decades of DFW hail.
How often does hail hit Venus?
NOAA lists 7 days since 2006 with hail one inch or larger within 4 miles of Venus. Smaller communities have fewer storm spotters, so reports tend to undercount what actually falls. The most recent report was 1.5-inch hail on June 2, 2026.
How old are most homes in Venus?
The median home in Venus was built in 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey. 9% of the city's housing units predate 1980 and 66% were built in 2010 or later. Many homes here still have their original builder-installed roof.
