CO2 chart card with background
Who it’s for
Building managers and HVAC engineers who track ventilation over time ask “is CO2 trending up or down?” They combine trend data with a recognizable background for dedicated building management or reception screens.
What it does
A sensor averaging 680 ppm this month, down from 870 ppm last month, shows a -22% delta in green — ventilation has improved. The chart below confirms the downward trend, displayed over the preset background image.
- Large current CO2 value in the center, color-coded across four concentration levels from Good to Hazardous
- Percentage change vs. the previous period, with a colored arrow — green when CO2 is falling (better ventilation), red when rising (worse ventilation)
- Absolute CO2 change in ppm shown below the delta percentage
- Time-series chart of CO2 readings over the selected time window, averaged per interval
- Decorative background image bundled with the widget, with a white overlay that keeps the text readable
- Shows one sensor’s data; it does not compare multiple rooms or buildings
How to set up
Data keys
| Key | Role | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
co2 | Chart series | Timeseries | CO2 concentration in ppm; drives the chart. The Latest, Delta percent, and Delta absolute overlays are automatically derived from this same key |
| Latest | Latest value | Timeseries | The headline figure above the chart. Its own color ranges are where the band colors are edited |
| Delta percent | Percentage change | Timeseries | Change against the previous period, as a percentage |
| Delta absolute | Absolute change | Timeseries | Change against the previous period, in the key’s own unit |
The widget ships with a simulated function datasource key labeled CO2 level, so it draws random values until you point the datasource at a device and rename the key.
To point it at your own device: open the dashboard in edit mode, open the widget’s Datasources, pick the entity or entity alias, and replace the function key with the key your device reports.
If the key has never reported for the selected time window, the chart is empty and all overlays show no data.
Value ranges
| Range (ppm) | Level | Color |
|---|---|---|
| 0–600 | Good | Green |
| 600–1000 | Moderate | Light Green |
| 1000–1500 | Elevated | Orange |
| 1500+ | Hazardous | Red |
How to customize
- To swap the background image — open the widget settings and set Background to a different image or switch to a solid color.
- To adjust how much the background shows through — change the Overlay opacity; lower values reveal more of the image, higher values push it further back.
- To use your own CO2 thresholds — edit the color ranges on the Latest data key; adjust the four default levels to match your facility’s targets.
- To hide or show the chart — toggle Show chart in the widget settings.
- To change the chart line color — set Chart color.
- To show min, max, or total in the legend instead of avg — edit the Legend settings.
- To hide the entity name subtitle or the timestamp — turn off Show subtitle or Show date.
Tips
- For CO2, a falling delta means better ventilation. The arrow turns green when CO2 drops vs. the previous period and red when it rises.
- If the background image reduces contrast, raise the Overlay opacity to keep the text readable from a distance.
Share Your Widget with the Community
Built a custom widget? Export it as a JSON from ThingsBoard and publish it to the IoT Hub through a simple 4-step wizard (Upload, Listing, Readme, Review & Submit). Share it with thousands of ThingsBoard developers worldwide and get featured in the catalog.