I would love to get the community’s opinion on fixing a leaky bulkhead. The grading nearby slopes down to it, and that is not really changeable. Its top couple of feet is an old, cracking, rotting mix of brick, concrete and pressure treated wood.

I’m thinking remove the door, dig down a foot or two on all sides, and form and pour a new concrete rim around the top, tying it into what’s there with rebar drilled and epoxied down into the existing brick and concrete. I’m thinking a might sort of entomb the brick in a thin layer of concrete at the same time, basically fastening the form to the concrete below it so it is covered by 1/2″ or so. Then apply a waterproof coating to the outside of the concrete before covering it back up with dirt.

My thought is this would waterproof the structure and essentially elevate the edge of it to prevent bulk water from intruding.

Does this sound like a decent strategy?  Got a better idea?

Thanks for any thoughts.