If I remember correctly, that study was done by DT's using a CPR bakpak. The simple answer is that it depends to a large degree on the skimmer that you are using and how much water flows through it relative to the size of your tank. If you're running a bakpak on a 55gal, then you're likely to not remove a lot of phytoplankton before it is consumed by the animals in your tank. If, on the other hand, you're running a Remora Pro or ETSS Reef Devil on that same tank, you'll notice that the skimmate is solid green within an hour of feeding...
I think that it is a personal choice, depending on what proportion of your tank goes through the skimmer within the hour following your adding of phytoplankton to the tank. Some people worry about forgetting to turn it back on, or find that it is inconvenient, and prefer to use a timer to accomplish the temporary shut-down. It seems to me that after you pay good money for the live phytoplankton, why do you want to send any of it into the skimmer cup? I guess the bottom line for many people comes down to convenience versus cost: how much effort does it take to shut off the skimmer, and how much does it cost to buy a little extra phyotplankton to cover that loss....
Rob
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