How do I clean up this mess?

Hi Shawna,

I take it you have his business card with Address and telephone No.? What reason did he give for walking off the job? Do contact him and ask him to return or atleast return some of your money. If he is unwilling to do so, get some legal advice!

Wow, he left you quite a mess! It looks like the drywall seams have not been sanded down; they look very rough. You can do that with drywall sanding mesh, the tool that it attaches to, and a long pole since it is on the ceiling. Sand everything smooth while wearing safety glasses so you get as little of the dust in your eyes as possible. The real glaring problem I see is the cutout for the can light on the right. The one on the left looks nice and clean, but the one on the right has a rough, irregular cutout. These lights normally have just a small trim piece that goes around them, so I’m sure the trim ring won’t cover that opening. You do have options though. You can do a drywall repair, or replace that section of drywall. You can see if you can find larger diameter can lights, then cut the two openings to accommodate the lights. You could try to find some type of larger trim piece to cover up the ugly opening.

Submit this to the hometalk people, sometimes they will come out and help with projects

P.S. Take Johns advice and get legal help.

Go straight to your lawyer. Immediately. Do not let this guy get away with this.

Here is how to hire a contractor.

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0242-hiring-contractor

Even though the information is US based, the same principals apply. Just for the heck of it, see if you can contact Mike Holmes who did a number of HGTV and DIY network renovation shows, you never know.

In the interim, at least have a consult with a reliable licensed contractor to write down in order each step that needs to be completed. Your local permit office will be able to help you too. Then watch lots of You Tube videos to familiarize yourself on how to perform certain tasks.

Not sure if this applies to Canada, but you could set yourself up with a Go Fund Me page.

https://www.gofundme.com/

Keep us posted! I feel so bad for you and your family.

Thanks all. We actually are in the middle of court proceedings with him, but won’t get a trial date until March. Was hoping to get this fixed up before then :).

thankful for all your advice

IF you want to attempt to finish the job yourself, don't let it intimidate you, the seams that were "mudded", you can sand smooth. Buy either sanding blocks or a cheap palm sander. Smooth out the seams he did fill. If he left drywall plaster or putty, use that to cover up the exposed screw heads. Apply with a small putty knife and smooth flat to hide the screw head. If you don't know what you are doing go to youtube and search drywall finishing DIY videos. Clean up the debris and garbage, do as much of the work yourself that way, if you are determined to do the work yourself, maybe ask for help on facebook, I follow several garage sale sites in my area, and I see people asking for help. Post your story on one and see if there are any good people in your area willing to help. Good luck! I hope you get this guy

Great your taking him to court. Never, never pay full price for job. Usually pay 1/3rd deposit until job is done. If your handy you can do some of the work yourself. You may be a ble to get a contractor to assist you and work with you. My opinion a lot of the work would need to be gutted and started from scratch. Get at least three contractors to evaluate the situation. Some of it looks like it wouldn'r pass code. Bet he didn't get permits. You can also check with you local building department.