2 Metre Black Aluminium LED Surface Profile 17x8mm, Opal Diffuser

Black anodised aluminium surface profile, 17x8mm, in a 2-metre length with an opal diffuser, end caps and mounting clips in the box. It screws flat to any surface and takes LED strip up to 12mm wide. At 8mm high it is the channel to reach for when the fitting must not announce itself — under a wall cabinet, along a shelf edge, down a stair stringer — and the opal cover blends the diodes into one continuous line.

• Size: 17 x 8mm flat section, 2 metres long.
• Strip capacity: 12.2mm internal channel, accepts LED tape up to 12mm wide.
• Build: anodised aluminium body, black finish, push-in opal diffuser.
• Mounting: surface mounted on clips — no routing, no recess.
• IP rating: IP20 — an open channel for dry indoor rooms only.
• In the box: diffuser, end caps and mounting clips.
• Guarantee: 7 years.

Where does a slim black surface profile work best?

Under kitchen wall units, along shelf fronts, inside wardrobes, under a stair nosing, behind a headboard. At 8mm deep it costs almost no headroom, which matters under a cabinet where every millimetre shows in the shadow gap. Against dark joinery the black anodising reads as a shadow line rather than a fitting; against pale carcasses it reads as a deliberate detail line.

Why buy the 2-metre length?

Joins. Across a 4-metre run, 2-metre lengths give you one join where 1-metre lengths give you three, and every join is a place the light line can break. If your run is not an exact multiple, the aluminium cuts cleanly with a fine-tooth blade — but slide the diffuser out and cut it separately. Sawing the cover while it is clipped into the channel is how diffusers crack.

The channel earns its keep on lifespan too. Aluminium moves heat roughly a thousand times better than plasterboard, and heat is what ages LED chips, so tape run inside this profile holds its brightness and colour longer than tape stuck to a bare surface.

One honest caveat: an open IP20 channel waterproofs nothing inside it. For a bathroom wet zone, a pergola or anywhere water reaches, choose a sealed IP67 fitting instead.

Questions buyers ask about 17x8mm surface profiles

Does a channel only 8mm deep still hide the LED dots?

• With COB tape yes, because there are no separate diodes to hide. With SMD tape at 120 LEDs per metre or more the opal cover blends them well; below that the shallow depth can let faint dots show, so pick COB for anything viewed close up.

Can it fit under a wall cabinet without cutting into the carcass?

• Yes, that is the intended fit. The clips screw to the underside and the profile snaps in, standing about 8.6mm proud once the cover is on — usually hidden behind the cabinet's front rail.

How does a 2 metre profile ship, and what does it cost?

• Parcelforce 48 as a long parcel: £15.85 under £90, free at £90+; no next-day or Saturday service on 2-metre lengths.

Shorter run? The same channel comes as a 1-metre black surface profile at £9.85. Need a corner section rather than a flat face? Take the black 19x19mm 2-metre corner profile. Dot-free tape to pair with it sits in COB LED strip, and the full range lives in LED strip profiles.

Not sure your strip and its connectors clear the 12mm channel? Call the UK LED Lights technical team in Telford on 01952 370008, Monday to Friday 9am–5pm, or email sales@ukledlights.co.uk.

Part of the full aluminium LED profile range — every size and mounting style in UK stock.