In 1987, the Ranger had all tie downs painted white, blue, red, green, and yellow. The Carl Vinson, in 1990, had all utility details such as sprinklers, hydrants, valves, and tie downs painted white. The reason for the painting was that they were designated as trip hazards or that they had to be inspected. Every airdale is told not to drag his feet. I was on both carriers during these periods. These details were painted after the refit but were later painted out black when the ship would have non-skid reapplied. What color you paint them just depends on the time the ship is in service and as we felt, the mood of the skipper. In the Navy, if it isn't moving, it's being painted, whether you have grey or black paint in the bucket, paint it.
When I did my model of the Ranger, I did her as she left San Diego just after her refit. She was really pretty with the black flight deck, all the details painted in white, but after 18 months at sea, everything was black, grey, or in red zinc primer.