Does Incense Set Off a Smoke Alarm? (Explained)


When you enjoy burning incense throughout the day, there might be a light cloud of smoke in the room causing you to ask, “does incense set off a smoke alarm?”

In most cases, incense smoke isn’t dense enough to set off a smoke alarm, although there are some sensitive alarms that can be set off by light smoke. Proximity is another factor. Burning incense a good distance away from your smoke detector will probably prevent it from going off. 

Read on for the conditions that could possibly set off your smoke alarm and tips on how to prevent that from happening. 

Does Incense Set Off a Smoke Alarm

Can Smoke from Incense Set Off a Smoke Alarm?

As an aromatic compound, incense is both fragrant and relaxing. Its calming effect can lead you to want to burn incense for hours on end. But doing so can generate enough smoke to fill a room. 

Generally speaking, burning incense sticks or cones in moderation won’t cause your smoke alarm to go off. Even incense sticks, like Gonesh or HEM that produce a lot of smoke, are unlikely to create such a thick cloud that it would trigger your smoke alarm.

But here are four factors that can potentially set off a smoke alarm when burning incense:

1. Amount of Smoke Produced

Burning excessive amounts of incense can generate thick clouds of smoke. This is what happens in religious temples where thousands of incense sticks are lit and burn simultaneously. Multiple studies have been conducted investigating the effects of air pollution created by temple incense smoke.

If the temple doors remained closed and there were smoke detectors inside, alarms would definitely sound – probably throughout the day. 

But when burning incense in Western homes, usually far fewer sticks are used, and the amount of smoke generated doesn’t significantly contribute to air pollution. 

Even if you burned a handful at once, the smoke produced still wouldn’t be thick enough to set off most alarms.  

2. Smoke Detector Sensitivity

In some environments, as in college dormitories or senior living facilities, smoke alarms are programmed to be highly sensitive.

So there are some environments where generating any kind of smoke is not only prohibited, but could harm more individuals if it were to develop into a fire. In such places, even a narrow stream of smoke could set off an alarm.

But the kind of smoke detector you have also determines how sensitive it might be to incense smoke.

As explained in the video above, there are two kinds of smoke alarms that are most frequently used in our modern times: photoelectric and ionization detectors. 

The photoelectric detectors are triggered when smoke breaks through the light of a laser beam. Dense, slow moving smoke would be more likely to set this alarm off. But even if a tiny bug disturbs the light beam, that can sound the alarm. 

Ionization detectors have a chamber filled with ions that are generated by two electrically charged plates. If the charge is disrupted by smoke, then the alarm sounds. Although fast moving, high flame fires are best detected by this type of alarm, it’s possible for them to give off a false reading. Steam, light dust, and even high humidity can trigger a false alarm.

Since these alarms are activated by different types of smoke, many home alarms incorporate both types of detectors.  

It’s my assumption that if your incense smoke is close enough to an ionization smoke alarm (or the combined type), the smoke might set it off, even if a small amount of smoke is produced.

3. Proximity to Smoke Alarm

Regardless of the type of smoke alarm you have, burning even one incense stick directly beneath a smoke detector can potentially set it off. 

If the incense smoke streams upwards or is held close to the alarm, its sensor can interpret that as the presence of smoke.

You can resolve this by burning the incense on the opposite side of the room or any other safe place that isn’t directly under the detector. 

4. Improper Ventilation 

When there’s heavy smoke buildup within a confined space, this can set off a smoke alarm, especially if it’s a photoelectric detector. So you want to make sure that there’s sufficient ventilation in the room where you are burning incense. 

Make sure circulation vents within your home are open and operational. Weather permitting, open a window while burning incense for even better air flow.

Proper ventilation not only reduces smoke build up to avoid an alarm sound, it also prevents you from inhaling too much smoke. 

How to Safely Burn Incense

As you can tell, you’re pretty safe from setting off the smoke alarm when burning incense, as long as you properly use them under safe conditions. 

That being said, if you are concerned that your incense burning practice might lead to a fire there are habits you can engage in that can prevent a house fire. 

  • Never burn incense unattended. Too many things can potentially go wrong if you leave incense burning unattended. A piece of paper can fall onto the incense tip and ignite. Your cat can mistakenly tip the incense over onto the rug, causing flames to rise. It’s just not worth it.
  • Use an appropriate container or tray to burn incense. Your tray or container should be long and wide enough to catch incense ashes. 
  • Only burn incense on a heat-resistant surface. Even the containers designed to hold incense sticks and cones can hold heat. To prevent damage to the surface underneath, make sure it’s heat-resistant.
  • Space out your burning times. You want to reduce exposure to smoke and the essential oils and ingredients in the incense. Hopefully, you’ll burn natural incense, but even then, too much of a good thing can cause harm.

Essential oil poisoning is a real clinical condition. Depending on the kind of essential oil, you can experience nausea, delirium, vomiting, dizziness, or additional symptoms from overexposure. This is even more true when children have been overexposed to these oils.

  • Install and maintain your smoke alarm. To this last point, it might be frustrating to get false alarm notifications, but never remove the smoke alarm battery out of frustration. It’s always better to get a false reading than none at all if at a time when you really need to be notified of smoke and flames.

Alternatives to Burning Incense

If you’re annoyed with a highly sensitive smoke alarm that is constantly set off when you burn incense, then you might want to consider an alternative.

If you burn incense for religious reasons, I’m not familiar with an appropriate alternative, except maybe burning a candle. But if your alarm is highly sensitive and set off by incense smoke, the same might happen with a candle.

But if you’re searching for an alternative way to fragrance your home, then there are some alternatives.

Essential Oil Diffuser 

If you burn natural incense that’s made with essential oils and botanical elements, then an essential oil diffuser might be the closest alternative.

Water and essential oils are combined to produce a fragrance mist that can not only make your home smell good, but it can also help support or change your mood, depending on which oils you choose to diffuse.

Essential Oil Burner

These are usually ceramic containers with an electric power source or candle heat source. They warm essential oils, releasing fragrance throughout the room. Usually, they work best in small to medium-sized rooms. 

Candle Warmer

Instead of lighting a candle, you can use a candle warmer. These electric devices heat candles from the bottom or top, releasing your favorite scent into the air without smoke.

Wax Warmer

Somewhat similar to the candle warmer, cubes of wax can be placed inside a wax warmer to release fragrance at a lower temperature. Because they’re melted at a lower temperature, wax melts typically have a stronger scent.

There’s truly no match to the experience of burning incense, but some of these alternatives might be more convenient for you. 

Final Thoughts

Incense smoke can potentially set off a smoke alarm, but in most circumstances, this won’t happen. 

If you burn a moderate amount of incense in a well-ventilated room away from a smoke alarm, you shouldn’t have to worry about setting it off. 

There are situations where the smoke detector is highly sensitive and will be set off by the lightest stream of smoke or steam. In such cases, you can either burn the incense in a different room or choose any of the alternative suggestions above as a way to fragrance your home or relax.

Grace Young

I love candles! I have personally tried over 100 brands of candles. The total burn time of these candles is over 5000 hours. I also talk about essential oil diffusers and reed diffusers. Essential oil diffusers and diffusers are also an important part of the scent in my home.

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