will smoke alarms work if they are upside down?

my smoke alarm was too sensitive to my cooking/burning in the kitchen so i took it down and set it in a high place (on top of my secretary desk). I realize now its upside down, and since smoke travels up.. will it still work?

Public Comments

1. Yes, but by the time it registers any smoke, you will have an inferno going. Smoke rises, which is why smoke detectors are at the highest points possible. Do yourself a favor and reinstall the detector where it's supposed to be, and then learn how to cook without torching the food.
2. Not unless the desk is smoking...
3. They work in any orientation, but need to be high up, to do you any good. I wouldn't have a smoke detector in a kitchen anyways, due to film left from grease and oil in the air. The film left in the detector, will attract dust and could render the detector useless or inaccurate. Find a location near the kitchen, but not in it.
4. The smoke detector wants to be high and in its normal orientation for two reasons. High because it is a cheap ionization type,which is lookiing for smoke from a hot fire. When upside down, it is a dust collector, and dust can make it false alarm. A bit of explanation on the "cheap ionization" bit. Ionization-type detectors work best on the smoke from flaming fires. Photoelectric-types work almost as well on smoke from flaming fires, and much better on smoke from smoldering fires. Photoelectrics cost more, so most people buy ionization-types. Sadly most organizations (including fire departments) who give away detectors, are not sufficiently aware of the differences, and chose to give the less effective ones.