Built-Up Roofing (BUR)
Built-up roofing (BUR) — also called tar and gravel roofing — is the oldest and most proven commercial flat roofing system still in active use. Alternating layers of hot-mopped bitumen and reinforcing felt create a multi-ply waterproofing system that is extraordinarily durable, puncture-resistant, and well-suited to the demands of South Texas commercial and industrial facilities. Many of the commercial buildings across the Rio Grande Valley that were originally roofed with BUR systems in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s are only now reaching the end of their first roof's service life — testament to BUR's longevity when properly installed.
While single-ply systems like TPO have largely replaced BUR as the specified system for new construction, BUR remains a viable specification for re-roofing when the existing system has proven its longevity and the owner wants the same proven technology. BUR is also relevant as the system most commonly encountered beneath the surface when performing full tear-offs on older South Texas buildings — our crews have removed and replaced hundreds of thousands of square feet of BUR across the region.
