How To Set Up A Newtowne Hyperbaric Oxygen Chamber- Tips and Tricks For Easy Set Up

So you got yourself a Newtowne Hyperbaric Oxygen chamber. Congratulations! You have just made a priceless investment into your own health and longevity! (Hopefully you bought your chamber through a reputable dealer like our team at Clarity Hyperbarics)

Newtowne does a great job of including instructions with your purchase, but this guide is for those who prefer a longhand version of setup.

Lets dive into the set up, and everything you need to know regarding operation.

Unboxing

This is one of the most exciting steps, yet most daunting steps. There is a lot of foreign objects in the boxes, but have no fear, this is a very simple process.

Step 1

Go ahead and set the tall thin box aside, you will come back to that later. (it contains the pipes for the support cage)

The other medium box contains the pump for the chamber, you can also set that aside.

The tall box that most likely came separate from the hyperbaric chamber contains an oxygen concentrator. That can also be set aside.

The moment we have all been waiting for, the 86 pound behemoth of a box. This box contains the chamber itself, the connections for the cage, the mattress, and some other miscellaneous boxes.

Go ahead and pull everything out of the big box and lay it out on the floor. I like to start with installing the D rings.

Hyperbaric Chamber Orientation

We have a decision to make now. Do you want your chamber set up as a top entry or a side entry? We prefer top entry, but that is up to you.

What is a Side Entry?

The chamber can be oriented to have the zippers on the side. This allows patients to roll in, rather than to step in. This can be beneficial to those who have difficulty moving from a sit to stand inside a confined area.

Step 2

From the manilla envelope located inside the large box, remove a clear plastic bag containing D-rings, chains and s-hooks. Take the d-rings out of the package and open them up. Unscrew the clasp so the ring is in the open position. Find the appropriate black loop on the ends of the chamber for which style of entry you want to set up. In my experience, it is best to start from the zipper side on the edge canvas loop. Once you get the right and left side ring installed, you can move to the second set of loops.

I recommend skipping the next row of loops and going to the third available for your next set of D Rings. Once those are installed you can set the chamber aside, we are going to build the frame next.

Building The Frame

Step 3

Grab the skinny, yet heavy box we set aside earlier, as well as the box of connections that was located inside the larger box. Its time to build a frame

Pull out all the pipes and line them up side by side. 4 of them will be slightly longer than the rest. Take those 4 pipes and grab the two straight connections. Unscrew the eyebolt to allow the pipe to slip into the connection and seat the pipe as far into the connection as it will go on both sides. Once they are seated, you can screw the eye bolts down tight.

(Pro-tip: If you use a screwdriver or some form of a bar, you can insert the lever into the eye of the bolt and twist them closed that way. This will save your fingers from a day of soreness)

Now you have two 8’ long pipes. Take one of the 3 prong connections and insert the long pipe into the portion of the connector that says “long pipe”. Do that on all 4 ends. Take one of the remaining pipes and connect both ends of the of the frame work together. You should now have a rectangle base of pipe on the floor.

Take 4 of the remaining pipes and instal them into the vertical portion of the connections (don’t forget to loosen the eyebolts, seat the pipe completely in the connection, and tighten the bolts back up).

Once those are installed, take 2 of the 2 prong connectors and install them onto the ends of one of the remaining pipes. Doing this flat on the floor helps keep the open prongs oriented in the same direction. Then take the pipe with the two connections you just built, and install it on the vertical portion of the pipes. Seat the pipes all the way into the connections, tighten down and repeat on the other side.

Just like that you have a frame!

Installing the Chamber

Step 4

Go to your plastic bag of chains and S hooks. Install the small S hooks on the eyebolts of the frame. The proper bolts for install are on the two prong connections, with the bolt hanging down. Once the small S hooks are on, install the chains, then add the large S-hooks to the end of the chain.

Next grab your chamber by the D-rings and install them onto the larger S-hooks hanging from the chain (this works best with two people helping in my experience).

Bingo, your chamber is now installed into the frame, now we have to make it operational.

Step 5

Grab your pump next and place it next to the end of the chamber containing a large brass nozzle. Take a flat head screw driver and loosen the hose clamps on the thick tubing that came in the large box on both ends. Attach one side to the pumps brass nozzle and tighten down the clamp. Attach the other side to the chamber and tighten down the clamp. Now your pump is attached.

Step 6

Adding your oxygen port is next. You will need a 1” crescent wrench for this process. Next to the intake for the pump on the chamber you will see 2 other ports with a plug in them. Remove one of the plugs with a wrench and grab your oxygen connection port. This is the funky look hunk of brass and steel with a screw cap built into it. Place it through the open port (you may have to bend it around the port entrance to get it properly seated. Screw the whole oxygen connection close around the port until it is hand tight. I then use a wrench to tighten it just slightly more than hand tight.

Step 7

Adding an internal pressure gauge is our next step. I recommend going to the top middle portion of the chamber where the valves are and unscrewing a black port with a crescent wrench. The gage install is a two part process. There is male and female end that have to be screwed together inside the open port, then the whole unit gets screwed into the port. Contact our office with questions regarding your gage install, as this can be tricky.

Step 8

The mattress is what we will work on next. Take the black bag that came in the big box, unzip it, and lay it on the floor. Orient the foam inside the opening of the bag, you should have to force it in. The zipped should be on the rounded side of the foam, not the flat side. Once you have “made your bed” you can then unzip your hyperbaric chamber and place the mattress inside, flat portion up or zipper down. You may have to bend the mattress to make it fit inside the opening of the chamber.

Step 9

Your next step is to do a test inflation of your chamber. Make sure all 3 zippers are in the closed position and the black handle on the inside and outside valve are in the horizontal or closed position. Once all that is achieved, go ahead an plug your green pump into the wall. The pump will immediately kick on, and start to pump your chamber full of oxygen. This can take up to 8-10 minutes on a first inflation.

While the pump is running, this is a good time to set up oxygen. Plug your concentrator into the wall and turn it on. It will make 2 loud beeps, that is completely normal. It will take about a minute for the oxygen concentrator to pump out pure oxygen. When the light goes from yellow to green, you know you are good to go. Take the 7 foot clear oxygen tubing that came in the clear bag and connect the oxygen concentrator via the green port on the front to the brass port on the chamber that we installed earlier.

If the hose immediately pops off the brass connection, go to the oxygen port on the chamber and turn the brass knob all the way open.

Plug the oxygen line in and you should be set to go.

Calibrating the Oxygen Concentrator

You can calibrate the concentrator to the exact liters per minute your doctor recommends. Buy using the knob you can twist to the right to increase the flow or to the left to decrease flow.

Step 10

Once you have brought your chamber up to pressure and heard a hiss start to seep out of one end, you can turn your pump off, twist the valve and release all the pressure. Once your gauge reads zero, you can begin to unzip. At this point your chamber is installed and ready to go!

Optional Step 11

Newtown Hyperbaric Chambers come with a failed circuit alarm to be placed on the pump. This is optional, and if your area has good electricity infrastructure, you shouldn’t need it. If power where to go off while inside the chamber, this failed circuit alarm will beep to alert you.

Time To Dive

Now that your chamber is all set up and ready to go, its time to dive. Contact our office with any further questions about setup or purchasing your own hyperbaric chamber!