I'm trying to seal a rainwater leak. Originating from a space between the top brick molding of a doorway (a sidelight on either side of a centered door) and the brick facade of a cinder block wall. This space between the brick molding and the brick is almost 1" wide.

The previous failed attempt to seal this gap consisted of a ton a acrylic latex silicone caulk. As the building does not have gutters, and the 1" gap at the top of the brick molding leads to a larger void between the brick/cinder block wall and the door jam, a significant leak seeps out from under the baseboard onto the interior floor.

I have been advised to remove the old caulk in and around were holes are visible and then reinsert an equally significant amount of the same type of caulk. This time without the holes. This has already failed once and will require 10 or so tubes of caulk.

Is the best solution to this problem simply to reuse the same materials only with better technique, or is there a better way.

thank you for your patience with my conundrum

 

A 1" gap is pretty big to caulk. I'd remove the top piece of trim then glue and nail a piece of wood on top of it so that it's closer to being the right width. Then you'll have less to caulk.

Keep in mind that water could be getting in through the brick at some point above the doorway, then running down the wall until it finds a way in. If you remove the top trim, it would be a good time to look around- you might find evidence of water coming from above. Brick is not 100% waterproof.