Grosse Pointe Woods, MichiganHouse painters for Grosse Pointe Woods’ Colonials, Capes and ranches

Guiffre’s Painting Co. paints home interiors and exteriors in Grosse Pointe Woods, the most populous of the five Pointes and home to the Mack Avenue business corridor. Many houses here were built from the 1930s through the 1960s, and their siding, trim and interiors call for different methods than the older homes beside them.

In more than 37 years of painting, Bob Guiffre has painted more than 1,800 homes across Grosse Pointe and Metro Detroit. His son, Bobby, works beside him on every project, and we paint with Sherwin-Williams.

A post-war Colonial, Cape Cod, ranch or brick bungalow isn’t a lesser version of an older house. Its materials are simply different: factory-finished aluminum siding and trim, mid-century brick, and interiors that may be plaster, drywall or both after decades of remodeling.

Can aluminum siding and trim on a Woods home be painted?

Yes, and on many post-war houses it’s the main exterior job. Aluminum siding and trim came with a baked-on factory finish that turns chalky and faded after decades of sun. Paint holds well on aluminum that’s properly prepared, and poorly on aluminum that isn’t.

• Wash off the chalk. If your hand comes away white after brushing the siding, that powder has to be scrubbed off and rinsed before paint can grip.
• Prime bare metal. Scratches and worn spots that show bare aluminum need a primer suited to metal; check the finish paint’s label too.
• Expect dents to show. A quality exterior acrylic changes the color, not the shape, so creases and dings stay visible.

If the brick is unpainted, it usually stays that way, so the painted parts are trim, soffits, fascia, shutters, garage doors and the siding above the brick. Wood trim still needs scraping, priming and caulking. Our guide to painting aluminum siding goes deeper; both are part of thorough exterior painting.

What do Woods interiors need, from Cape Cods to ranches?

Plaster cracks along settlement lines and needs plaster-appropriate repairs; drywall shows nail pops and taped seams that need resetting. Many Woods houses have one or the other, and some have both. Each layout brings its own challenge too.

• Cape Cod upstairs: sloped ceilings and knee walls blur where wall ends and ceiling begins. Decide that line before painting; one common choice is to paint the slope with the ceiling so the room reads brighter.
• Ranch hallways and open rooms: long, continuous walls show lap marks and patchy touch-ups, so each wall should be painted corner to corner in one session, keeping a wet edge.
• Paneling in a den or basement: knotty pine and other wood paneling can be painted, but knots and resin bleed through ordinary primer. A stain-blocking primer comes first, and the change is hard to reverse.

Kitchens and baths may have been updated more than once, leaving glossy old finishes that need dulling and priming. That’s routine interior painting prep, and exactly where a quick job cuts corners.

Which colors suit post-war Colonials, Capes and ranches?

Post-war houses usually have simpler trim and longer, lower lines than period-revival homes, so color does more of the work. A few pairings that suit them:

• Siding: Repose Gray SW 7015, a light gray that reads cooler than Agreeable Gray, suits aluminum siding on a Colonial or Cape. It can lean slightly blue or violet in cool light, so check a sample on your north side.
• Shutters: Pewter Green SW 6208, a deep, moody green-gray, or Iron Ore SW 7069, a soft black, both sit comfortably with red or tan brick.
• A ranch’s front door: Restrained Gold SW 6129, a muted, earthy gold, warms a long, low facade without looking loud.
• Inside: Accessible Beige SW 7036, a warm greige that leans more beige than Agreeable Gray, suits rooms with warm wood floors or trim.

Screens and chips mislead, so test real samples on your own siding and walls in morning and afternoon light. Our shutter color guide has more pairings.

How should you plan painting a Woods home?

Post-war houses tend to be simpler to paint than ornate older homes, which makes scheduling easier. A few things are still worth deciding early:

• Do the small exterior pieces together. Paint garage doors, shutters, the front door, gutters and downspouts along with the trim, not piecemeal later, so colors match and the house looks finished.
• Remember the 1978 line. Even a 1960s ranch was built before 1978, so it may contain lead-based paint. The EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting rule requires certified firms and lead-safe work practices for paid work that disturbs more than 6 square feet of painted surface per room inside, or more than 20 square feet outside. Our guide to lead paint in older homes explains more.
• Use the seasons. Exterior work fits roughly late spring to early fall in Michigan, and a ranch’s one-floor layout makes a winter interior easy to stage room by room.