For decades the big, clunky chest freezer was a staple of the family home.

Unwieldy in size and with a motor that could, with age, be mistaken for a cargo plane, the white beast preserved food seemingly forever as it occupied a sizable corner of the basement or garage.

Along came the stand-up model. No larger or louder than a fridge, the upright freezer uses little space no matter where it’s put in a home.

Both styles of freezer are widely sold. But which is more convenient, energy efficient and suitable for today’s modern family? The Daily News took that question to some local appliance retailers.

Of the two, the chest freezer is still the most popular among consumers. Mike Caputo, manager of The Brick, said that’s because a stand-up model costs about 30 per cent more than the traditional chest.

Each style has its demographic though, he said. People who grew up with a chest freezer keep buying them. It’s the younger generation who purchase the upright models.

“People who are 50 years old or older still buy the chest freezer,” said Caputo. “The younger generation sees the convenience factor of an upright and are buying an upright.

Caputo’s staff finds people in their late 60s and 70s are moving to an upright. He said this saves them the hassle of stooping over and digging through a freezer full of heavy, frozen food.

Many young families live in smaller homes, townhouses and apartments and there isn’t enough room for a big, bulky chest freezer, he said. Those who live in a home with a basement or garage, it’s not an issue.

A chest freezer also holds more. Caputo said a customer needs to buy a 17-cubic-foot upright in order to hold as much as a 15-cubic foot chest.

There is a downside to the space provided by a chest freezer. Durvene Gal, owner of the Appliance Gallery on Mount Paul Way, said it’s easy for food to become lost at the bottom as the family purchases and freezes more meat, bread and bulk items.

“With an upright, accessibility to things is a lot easier,” said Gal.

Caputo agrees.

He said an upright puts the food front and centre.

For seniors, this makes it easier to find and carry out that Christmas or Thanksgiving turkey.

“It’s in front of your face. It’s at eye level,” he said.

An upright also does a better job of preserving the food while freezing. In a chest freezer, the Freon units are on the outside of the chest. Caputo said the cooling must work its way into the middle and some food doesn’t freeze as easily.

On an upright, the units are built into each shelf, so the food freezes evenly throughout, he said.

In his opinion, the upright’s design makes it the more energy efficient model.

But the newer chest freezers are adept at keeping in the cold. Older models were solid and unyielding.

If a floor had any curve to it, the lid wouldn’t seal properly. Not so with a new one.

“Now, everything is built to flex. The lid flexes and seals over the unit,” he said, adding no cold air escapes. 

Being a higher end furniture store. Gal offers a third freezer option for those who want to build the unit directly into their kitchen. She said the freezers are disguised as a cabinet and can be built out of stainless steel or with the same material as the surrounding cabinets.

“They are more specialized ones,” said Gal. “It’s more for the designer kitchen in high-end homes.”

The size varies depending on the desire of the homeowner and the cost goes up accordingly. She’s had 24-inch freezer is built for about $5,000.