I mistakenly plugged in my new iron before taking off the plastic coating on the sole plate. What a mess. I found a solution on the internet that said put the iron in the freezer and the plastic would get brittle and peal off. I didn't have room in the freezer so I sat the sole plate down on ice. It took some work but the plastic did chip off. What little residue was left I used a damp magic eraser (like Mr. Clean one) on a cold iron. You wold never know there was any residue on the iron now. When my iron gets a little gunky from starch, general use etc. I just use a magic eraser and my iron is like new. I have a shiny sole plate on my iron. I don't know how it would work with a coated sole plate. Good luck. It can be cleaned.