Meet the Pasadena Team Behind Thistledown Insulation Pasadena
We’re a small crew, and that’s by design. Every technician who walks through your door in Pasadena works under the same roof, shares the same training, and answers to the same standard. No subs, no strangers, no rotating cast. What ties us together is a simple belief: insulation is only as good as the person installing it. You can buy the best product on the market and still get a lousy result if it’s rushed. So we don’t rush. We show up when we say we will, we explain what we’re doing, and we leave your home cleaner than we found it. That’s how a Cedarwell-family company works.
Our People
Marcus R. – Lead Technician
Marcus has been running attic insulation installs in the Pasadena area for over a decade, and he’s the guy who walks your attic before anyone else touches a hose. He specializes in cathedral ceiling retrofits and older 1920s bungalow attics, spaces where framing is tight and a wrong cut matters. He holds current Owens Corning and Johns Manville installer certifications and recertifies every two years. Outside of work, Marcus restores vintage bicycles and will absolutely notice if your garage has good natural light.
Elena V. – Senior Installer, Spray Foam
Elena leads the two-person spray foam rigs and has been with the crew since 2016. She’s Icynene and Demilec certified and handles jobs where moisture control matters, like unconditioned crawlspaces and rooms over garages. Her specialty is clean masking: she tapes off every gap and seam before spraying, which is why our foam jobs have crisp lines and zero overspray. When a homeowner asks, “Will this smell last?” Elena’s the one who explains cure times and ventilation in plain terms. She keeps a photo of every dog she’s met on a job, and the list is long.
Tommy B. – Service Coordinator
If you call Thistledown Insulation Pasadena at 6 a.m. or 11 p.m., Tommy answers. He joined the team in 2019 after years in local dispatch, and he schedules every job in Pasadena, Altadena, San Marino, and the surrounding neighborhoods. He knows which crews are where and how long each job type actually takes, so when he gives you a window, it’s real. Tommy’s the one who confirms your appointment the night before and sends the technician’s name and arrival time. He grows citrus in his backyard and brings lemons to the shop every winter.
Priya S. – Apprentice Installer
Priya joined us two years ago as the crew’s first dedicated apprentice and has already completed her OSHA 30 and GreenFiber installer training. She works every attic alongside Marcus, learning the craft the right way: floor by floor, vent by vent. Her current focus is blown-in fiberglass coverage mapping, and she’s meticulous about checking depth with a gauge at every corner of the attic, not just near the hatch. Priya recently bought her first home in Arcadia and is planning to insulate it herself after hours, which everyone on the crew finds both admirable and slightly exhausting.
One Standard, Every Job
This team works to one standard, and it’s the same one our owner, Neil Barron, set when the Pasadena location opened in 2003. Every customer receives a written price before any work starts, every time. That’s not a promotion; it’s how we work. The 365-Day Done Right Promise follows every job we install: if something isn’t done right, we make it right, no debate, no fine print. On every visit, you’ll see shoe covers from the front door to the attic hatch and drop cloths across your hallway. We choose pet-safe insulation products where a choice exists, so the dog can stay home. And before we leave, we take a photo of the clean-up so you can see exactly what we did. Thistledown is the soft fluff of the thistle, one of nature’s lightest insulators. The name is a promise about how carefully we treat your home, and the crew behind it is the proof. Call (626) 657-5343 and Tommy will get you on the schedule.
Written by Neil Barron, Owner at Thistledown Insulation Pasadena, serving Pasadena since 2003.