Westlake estate streets — Vaquero, the custom cul-de-sacs around Southlake Town Square, and a lot of Colleyville’s bigger lots — are full of homes that want a tile or thick shake look without the dead weight of clay or concrete. That is the lane DECRA stone-coated steel was built for: steel panels with a ceramic stone finish that read as shake or tile from the curb.
I’m Blake Snow. I’ve been roofing for 30 years. We install and repair DECRA and other stone-coated steel systems from experience — we are not certified with DECRA, and I will not pretend otherwise. Here’s how I walk Westlake, Southlake and Colleyville owners through the product using DECRA’s own published specs and warranty, not brochure fluff.
What DECRA actually is
Per DECRA’s site and the 2023 specifications sheet, DECRA panels are formed from aluminum-zinc coated steel, primed, basecoated, and finished with ceramic-coated stone granules plus an acrylic over-glaze. The finished roof is still a metal roof. The stone coat is what sells the look and what hides minor hail marks better than a smooth painted panel.
Current profile family DECRA publishes:
| Profile | Min. pitch | Panel size | Installed exposure | Panels / sq | Installed weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Villa Tile | 3:12 | 17” × 44-1/4” | 14-1/2” × 39-1/2” | 25.2 | ~160 lb / sq |
| Tile | 3:12 | 16-1/2” × 52” | 14-1/2” × 50” | 20 | ~150 lb / sq |
| Shingle XD | 4:12 | 14-1/8” × 52-3/8” | 12-1/4” × 49-1/2” | 23.8 | ~150 lb / sq |
| Shake XD | 3:12 | 14-1/8” × 52-1/8” | 12-3/8” × 49-7/8” | 23.4 | ~150 lb / sq |
| Shake | 3:12 | 14-5/8” × 53” | 12-5/8” × 51” | 22.4 | ~150 lb / sq |
Sources: DECRA 2023 spec sheet; Shake XD flyer. Shake XD is designed for direct-to-deck install; classic Shake and Tile are published as batten installs. That difference belongs on the bid, because battens change deck prep, underlayment and how you detail valleys and hips.
Why estate owners in Westlake ask about it
- Weight. A Westlake Mediterranean or French-country roof that started life under clay or concrete tile can push framing capacity hard on a re-roof. At roughly 1.5 lb per square foot, DECRA’s published installed weights sit in a completely different category from tile. That does not mean every house can take it without an inspection — it means stone-coated steel is often the way to keep a tile look when the engineer or the deck says “no more clay.”
- Hail country. DECRA publishes UL 2218 Class 4 impact resistance and warranty language for hailstone penetration up to 2.5 inches. North Texas gets real hail. Class 4 is useful. It is still a lab test, and cosmetic granule loss or dents can show up even when the panel did not puncture. Ask your insurer separately about credits; do not treat the Class 4 stamp as a hail warranty for every surface mark.
- HOA optics. Many Westlake, Southlake and Colleyville architectural committees care more about color and profile than about whether the substrate is clay or steel. DECRA’s shake and tile profiles are often easier to submit than a bright standing-seam color change. Bring full-size samples and the product sheet — screen colors lie.
Warranty: what DECRA’s PDF actually says
The current DECRA by IKO Metals Limited Warranty (10/2025) covers the original consumer purchaser (and the first transferee under the transfer rules) for manufacturing defects that:
- directly result in leaks,
- result in blow-off in winds up to 120 mph, or
- result in hailstone penetration of 2.5 inches or less completely through the Roof System.
Remedy limits shrink after year 20 (materials only, prorated) and again after year 40 (20% of materials cost). Lifetime coverage is for single-family detached residential; other structure types are listed at 50 years. Normal weathering, minor granule loss, fading, and surface coating loss caused by hailstones are specifically called out in the exclusions / surface-coating sections — so do not sell a homeowner the idea that every hail dent is a warranty claim.
What most DECRA pages skip (and what I put on every Westlake bid)
Competitor articles around DFW usually cover cost ranges, “pros and cons,” and HOA approval. Useful. What they often skip:
- Panel vs. accessory matching. Ridges, hips, valleys, flashings and pipe boots have to match the profile and the finish. A beautiful Shake XD field with mismatched ridge caps looks unfinished from the street on a Westlake elevation.
- Repair reality after hail. Stone-coated panels are replaced as panels, not as individual “tiles.” Matching older colors after a storm depends on what DECRA and the distributor still stock. Document the color name before you need it.
- Pitch and profile. Shingle XD’s published minimum is 4:12; several other profiles are 3:12. Low porch ties and clipped gables on estate homes need a separate detail — sometimes standing seam or a membrane — not forced DECRA.
- Who is certified. Plenty of sites imply every installer is a factory “certified” DECRA crew. Ask for proof. We install from experience and say so.
Our DECRA and stone-coated steel pages cover the product family. If you are comparing against clay or concrete instead, see tile roofing. For hail documentation, see storm damage.
Talk to us about your Westlake roof
We install and repair DECRA shake and tile profiles on estate homes across Westlake, Southlake, Colleyville, Trophy Club and the rest of DFW. We’re certified with GAF, CertainTeed, Owens Corning, Atlas, Johns Manville, Carlisle, Tropical, Mule-Hide and Enviroshake, and we’re A+ rated with the BBB. Request a free inspection or call (817) 733-9228.
