Synthetic Slate Roofs in North Oaks: Replacing Aging Cedar Shakes

Your cedar shake roof is failing. The west-facing slopes are silvering past charcoal. Several courses are curling at the butts. There are visible gaps where shakes have split and slipped. After last year’s hail event, your insurance carrier covered exactly enough to do a partial repair — and the contractor who came out told you the rest of the roof has 3–5 years left.

You’ve owned the home for 12 years. You love the cedar shake aesthetic. You don’t want to replace it with three-tab asphalt. And you don’t want to spend $200,000 on natural slate.

This is the conversation I have with North Oaks homeowners every spring. The 1970s and 1980s North Oaks builds — the wood-shake era of Minnesota luxury construction — are now reaching the natural end of their roofing life. The original cedar is 35–45 years old. The repair patches from past insurance claims have aged differently than the original shakes. The HOA’s approved-materials list still emphasizes architectural integrity. And the homeowner is looking for a replacement that holds the shake aesthetic without the maintenance headache.

Synthetic slate — specifically DaVinci shake-profile or Brava shake-profile — is what most North Oaks homeowners end up with. I’m Noah Bergland, co-owner of Owl Roofing in Shoreview, and we’ve installed synthetic slate replacements on cedar-shake homes across North Oaks and can do it for your home too.

TL;DR — replacing cedar shake with synthetic slate in North Oaks

Why cedar shake roofs fail at exactly 35–45 years

Cedar shake roofs in Minnesota have a predictable failure curve. The first 15–20 years, they’re stable. The next 10–15 years, they begin showing UV degradation on south and west slopes, granular fungal growth on north and east slopes, and progressive curling at the butts. The final 5–10 years, the failure rate accelerates.

Freeze-thaw cycling. Twin Cities winters cycle wood through expansion and contraction up to 40 times per year. The cellular structure fatigues. Water absorption increases. Splitting starts at the butt edges.

UV degradation. South and west exposures take 4–6× the UV dose of north and east exposures. The lignin breakdown is visible as silvering, then graying, then a sandy texture as the surface erodes.

Biological growth. Minnesota humidity in summer combined with shaded slopes supports algae, lichen, and moss. The biological growth retains moisture and accelerates wood decay.

Why synthetic slate works for the cedar replacement

Both DaVinci and Brava manufacture shake-profile composite tiles specifically designed to replicate cedar shake aesthetic. DaVinci Bellaforte Shake and Brava Cedar Shake are both Class 4 impact rated, Class A fire rated, and warrantied for 50 years.

For North Oaks homeowners, the swap delivers four things cedar can’t:

1. The architectural look stays. From the street, a synthetic shake roof reads as cedar shake.

2. The maintenance disappears. No more annual moss treatment, curling-shake repairs, replacing split butts after windstorms.

3. The fire risk is eliminated. Class A fire rating is the highest. Cedar shake is Class C without treatment.

4. The insurance economics shift. Class 4 impact rating qualifies for 10–30% premium discounts. Cedar shake is increasingly difficult to insure on premium homes.

The North Oaks HOA reality

North Oaks Home Owners’ Association maintains architectural review for exterior changes. Synthetic slate is approvable but requires proper application. Submit color samples and product spec sheets to the architectural review committee in advance. DaVinci’s and Brava’s manufacturer literature includes the exact ASTM and UL test data the HOA wants to see.

The HOA review timeline is typically 2–4 weeks. Building the review window into the project timeline is critical — material lead times for DaVinci and Brava are 4–8 weeks, so the project can run HOA review in parallel with material order without slipping.

Most importantly: synthetic slate is approved more often than rejected when the application is complete.

What a typical North Oaks cedar-to-synthetic-slate project looks like

“We had a great experience working with Noah Bergland on replacing the roof of our North Oaks home. From start to finish, the process was smooth and professional. Noah’s crew was extremely thorough and left the property spotless.”

— Verified Google review, North Oaks homeowner

The pricing breakdown for a typical North Oaks cedar replacement

For a 4,500 sq ft North Oaks home with moderate roof complexity (cross-gables, two dormers, one chimney, one skylight) and 35-year-old cedar shake currently in place:

What can go wrong — and how to prevent it

HOA rejection from incomplete submission. Submit full material spec sheets, color samples, and photos of approved synthetic slate installs from elsewhere in North Oaks.

Deck capacity surprise. 1970s-1980s North Oaks rafter framing was sized for cedar shake. DaVinci tiles are heavier (370 lbs/square) than cedar; Brava is lighter (225 lbs/square). On homes where existing rafter framing shows sag, Brava is the safer choice.

Color drift between material order and install. Synthetic slate is manufactured in batches. Order the entire project’s material at once.

Cedar nail-pull damage to deck. Old cedar nails fight the tear-off. Inspect each sheet of decking individually as the cedar comes off.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to replace cedar shake with synthetic slate in North Oaks?

$80,000-$140,000 for a 4,000-6,000 sq ft home, depending on roof complexity, deck condition, and the specific synthetic slate brand chosen.

Will the North Oaks HOA approve synthetic slate as a cedar shake replacement?

Yes, when properly submitted. Approval typically requires manufacturer spec sheets, color samples, and ideally photos of approved installs from elsewhere in the community. Allow 2-4 weeks for review.

Does synthetic slate look like cedar shake from the street?

Yes. Shake-profile synthetic slate from DaVinci Bellaforte Shake and Brava Cedar Shake reads as cedar from 30+ feet.

How long will a synthetic slate roof last in Minnesota?

Rated for 50-year service life. Twin Cities installs from the early 2000s show no degradation suggesting the rating is conservative.

Can I do partial replacement — leave some cedar and add synthetic slate?

Not recommended. Mixing creates aesthetic inconsistency and doesn’t solve the underlying cedar failure problem.

What’s the timeline from contract to project complete?

8-14 weeks from signed contract. HOA review 2-4 weeks. Synthetic slate material lead time 4-8 weeks. Installation 7-12 working days for a 45-50 square North Oaks home.

Where to start

To request a free luxury reroof estimate from Owl Roofing, fill out a short form. We’re based in Shoreview — about 8 miles from North Oaks — and we’ve installed synthetic slate cedar replacements across the community for over a decade. We handle the HOA submission package, material order coordination, and the full project from tear-off through final walk-through.

For more, see our guides on synthetic slate roofing cost and Brava vs DaVinci compared. For full premium reroof scope, see $100K+ Twin Cities reroof guide.