If it's a scroll compressor, they will pump some liquid refrigerant. If it
isn't, then you might have done damage to the compressor. A dirty air filter
can do a lot of damage. If your filter was that dirty, chances are that a
lot of dirt was bypassing it. Call someone to check and clean the unit. Be
sure to tell them about the dirty filter.

"Jamie" wrote in message
...
My 2 ton heat pump outside unit (4yrs) was today making an unusual, low
pitched grinding sound. The fan was still turning, air was flowing. But
the
inside furnace/ac unit (3yrs) was hot. The housing and pipes that do not
usually get hot had gotten very hot to the touch. I turned it off and left
it rest for 45 minutes. I cleaned the filter which was filthy. Fired it
back
up and it has been fine all day. Can anyone tell me if the dirty clogged
filter was causing the sound/heat problem? Should I be worried about this?
Fire away.