Can you share the code you're using to try and do it?
#orbit controls and camera up
bright rapids
naive light
does calling controls.update() after changing up help ?
if you are forced to go with the delete and add another route ,don't forget to use the dispose method https://threejs.org/docs/index.html?q=orbit#examples/en/controls/OrbitControls.dispose
but imo rotating the model would be ideal as this usecase is not widely used and you might face similar "up" related issues in the future
added axes helpers and grid helpers to help visualise the orientation better https://jsfiddle.net/zuul/Lkprcrzw/
naive light