Code for footings on lava rock?

[Rob Tucker]

Foundations, by definition, are the base for the building. Talking about "shock absorbing" aspects of base course is rationalization and wishful thinking. Your best bet is to be as firmly attached to as firm and competent a patch of planet Earth as you can find. You ideally want to be "at one" with an event. "At odds" with the motion of the earth can be very destructive. The planet will be, effectively, hammering the house. Which do you think will win?

Precast piers as foundations for houses are the structural equivilant of a mobile home. They're just square concrete tires.