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We typically only use 4K and 5k for exterior. Almost everything interior we use 3k and we install dimmers. Color balance is a warm medium tone between the obnoxious yellow (2,700) and bright white of 4-5k. If you install a dimmer you would be able to control the light level to your exact preference. Also, if you do go the dimmer route, make sure the dimmer you buy is LED compatible, and better yet, make sure to get one that your bulbs say they work with. More on reddit.com

Why do you think it isn't safe to keep them? Because of stuff like this: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cfl-light-bulbs-soft-attack/ ??

Just change to LED's as your CFL's fail over time. That's actually the more frugal way and more ecologically friendly way.

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Allow me to get a bit technical for you: Color temperature (approximated in the units of degrees Kelvin, or K), is going to set the overall 'white balance' for your light source, meaning it will mainly affect the overall hue of the colors that you perceive. Although it is subjective, 4000K is generally considered to be "neutral" white light, where the light isn't inherently too red or too blue. Color Rendering Index (CRI), a unit-less number, tells you how well your light source allows you to distinguish between different colors (essentially, it tells you the overall clarity of the colors that you can perceive). CRI is measured on a scale of 0 to 100, with 0 being monochromatic light- which allows you to distinguish no color differences, to 100 being the best possible ability to distinguish color (100 is equal to the 'CRI' capability of light emitted from a black-body radiation source- such as direct sunlight) The point I'm trying to make here is that a specific Color Temperature in isolation doesn't really mean anything. If you want a light source that will both render colors with "neutral" white-balance AND allow you the most clarity in distinguishing colors, then you'd (arguably) shoot for a light source in the 3500-4500 Kelvin range, with a CRI as high as possible. For most casual use, fluorescent or LED products with a CRI > 82 would be considered acceptable. Footnote: There are methods for getting even more precise color rendering / overall quality of light than what I outline above, but such methods and measurements are way beyond the scope of this thread. TL;DR - For reasonably good "neutral" light, try 4100K LEDs or Fluorescent lights with a stated CRI of 82 or higher. More on reddit.com