My mother is contemplating having this surgery within the next few
months and we've both done a lot of googling.  Not a whole lot of
information, much of it repetitive.

My mom's doc says this may be necessary for 6 weeks.  Various websites
give estimates of days, weeks or months.  I don't know how well they can
predict in individual cases.  

http://www.ritetime.com/RiteTimeProducts.html was the only website I
bookmarked.  Google for vitrectomy furniture and see what turns up.  The
stuff is covered by Medicare here, so your medical coverage will
probably be as good or better.  The stuff is sold and rented and is
probably available used.  

My mom has severe claustrophobia and is unable to even lie face down on
her bed without feeling panic -- she would choose to go blind rather
than do the face-down thing for six weeks.  Fortunately it is possible
to fill the eyeball with oil rather than air, which procedure does not
require the face-down thing.  The bad news is that a second surgery is
required to remove the oil after the hole has healed.  

She had a vitrectomy for a macular "bubble", which involved filling the
eyeball with water.  Her vision was supposed to improve within weeks,
and the doctors are mystified why this has not happened even three
months later.  She thinks it might be getting a wee bit better, but is
guarding against false optimism.  The surgery itself was relatively
inoffensive -- the procedure can be done under local anaesthesia, but my
mom's claustrophobia meant that she had to be knocked out, a much
lengthier procedure.  The surgery itself took two hours, but we were
there all day.  All things considered, way less bothersome than
childbirth.

She had to wear a patch over her eye for one or two days and put three
kinds of drops into her eye for several weeks.  She was examined
numerous times over the next few weeks, and then less frequently.  She
has an appointment coming up in a few weeks wherein she will be expected
to name a date for the macular hole vitrectomy.  She's not looking
forward to it, but believes the doc when he says it can only get worse
if she lets it go.

Good luck to you.  They probably wouldn't recommend the surgery unless
there was minimal downside with the potential for a good upside, but I
don't think there can be any guarantees.