Betty, thanks for posting that question. It's one that my husband and I are in the midst of debating right now. Our chest freezer is probably more than 30 years old. It's only been used for about 20 of those 30 years, though. I'm not much on leaning into it, and it really takes some doing to keep from losing stuff at the bottom of it. Sometimes I'd love an upright. At the same time, I know it's more energy efficient (even a 30 year old model) than an upright. So I've dealt with that over the years. DonnaR/CA

We have a Frigidaire 11.5 cf made by Electrolux (#FFU1152DW4). I realize it's not the 16 you are asking for but it's fine for what we need to supplement a CD fridge upstairs. This is a no-frills stand-up model - doesn't even have an interior light. But it's quiet, and it simply works - has been running for eight years with absolutely no issues. I've never needed to defrost it but I don't think it's 'frost free'. We keep it downstairs in the combo exercise room/workshop. One tip though, because the freezer is not attended to as often as a fridge, I've added a plug-In Power Failure Alarm to the same outlet as the freezer in the event that circuit trips.

Danby have been around. I don't know anything about the company. They seem to make basic units and a lot of special sizes and specialty units. I don't remember seeing any reports from users. Freezer technology for the basic function is old. What's newer is evaporators. If you want no frost, an evaporator system will be far superior, but perhaps not in budget. Manual defrost freezers, even dirt cheap ones, if you're careful about not opening the door much, and certainly not standing there staring (it helps to keep a running list of what's in there instead of letting out all the cold), it should serve you well. For self-defrost units, that system would be the telling point. It's also old tech, so it should work, but how soon freezer burn sets in might vary. Given that individual usage creates wildly different environments in the freezer, it's hard to pin down which might work better for which person. I'd say a lot depends on your budget. If you like it better and get it, what happens if you're not happy with it? Can you afford to sell it at half of what you paid and try again? What if you weren't happy with a better known one, once you got it? The interior is important to me. That makes the Danby sound like a front runner for you.

A word of caution...unless your pantry is very well ventilated (or you keep the door open at all times), freezers and refrigerators do not mix well with pantry storage. Food should be stored in a dry, cool, dark space. Freezers and refrigerators put out a lot of heat! I'm not saying don't do it, but I am recommending you have good ventilation to get rid of the heat. (It's also why it's not a good idea to have a window in a pantry. In fact, the best location is an interior room where temperature & humidity are better controlled -- besides, why waste an outside wall on a pantry?!)