I've never played in a band thats needed a fog machine.
Is that one of the oil based ones? I'm assuming so based on the price. Those suck to be honest. In my last band the keyboard/gear whore had three big ones of those and often set up all three despite getting complaints nearly every time he used them due to the smoke causing the bar patrons to cough (the smoke is not ground hugging like dry ice). But we HAD to have that stuff....and he wonders why he could not get gigs....
No one short of a headlining national touring band needs them. And even then they are not needed. But he wanted to enhance the effect of the four laser lights he had set up on stage......
Two more reasons I am glad to be out of that band.
Most clubs will use fog machines to give better definition for the lighting rig. I played a club a few weeks ago that had three of them onstage. When the sound guy asked on the intercom during soundcheck if the monitor mix was okay our singer said on the mic, "mix is OK but can you cool it with the fucking smoke machines?"
I haven't seen a house fog machine here in LA since Warrant was a club band.
When crazy guitar guy set off his smoke machine I could barely breathe. Something about that stuff screws with my sinuses.
He and the keyboard player in my last band would get along really well....